Nail guide and saver



June 4,1929. J. DEALY 1.715.819

NAIL GUIDE AND SAVER Filed July 1'7, 1926 I NV EN TOR.

James DeaI Patented June 4, 1929.

UNITED sTArss IPATENTIOE JAMES DEALY, 01? LITTLE BLUE, MISSOURI.

NAIL GUIDE Application filed July 17,

This invention relates to a new article of manufacture which may be designated as a nail saver and a guide and as for its primary object, the provision of a tool which may be used in connection with carpentry and cabinet making when it is necessary or desired to drive nails into extremely hard wood.

A further object of my invention is the contemplation of a tool which may be used to straighten nails afterthey have been bent slightly as a result of driving them into hard wood.

An even further object of this invention is the provision of a nail saver and guide tool which is equipped with a pair of coacting jaws, each of which has a plurality of grooves formed in the abutting faces which are used to engage nails of varying sizes and lengths.

Yet another object of the invention is the provision of a tool of the character mentioned which has a number of co-acting grooves formed in a pair of jaws which have their opposite edges converging towards each other as the free end of the jaw is approached.

Another object of my invention is the provision of a nail saver which is durable, cheap to make, performs a necessary function and which is not likely to get out of order. Many minor objects will appear during the course of detailed specification referring to the accompanying drawing in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a nail saver and guide made in accordance with the preferred form of the invention.

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary side elevation of the device illustrated in Fig. 1, showing a nail piece between the co-acting jaws.

Fig. 3 is a vertical section taken on line III III of Fig. 2.

F 4 is a. perspective view of a nail saver and guide tool made in accordance with a modified form of the invention.

Many modifications in the construction of a device made in accordance with my invention may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention.

Referring at this time to the drawing in detail, where the numerals 1 and. 2 refer to a pair of handles formed integrally with a pair of jaws movable toward and from each other about a pivot pin, 6, which holds the jaws and handles in the operative position.

With particular reference at this time to the jaws 3 and 4 of the preferred form, it is to be mentioned that they should be made with AND sAvEn.

1926. Serial No. 123,196.

their opposite edges 7 converging as the free end of the jaw is reached. This structure forms a jaw which has a narrower face at one end than at the other. To further carry out my invention I have provided a plurality of grooves, 9, which are formed in the abutting faces of jaws 3 and 4. These grooves, 9, are dropped perpendicularly to the line of travel of the jaws 3 and 4, and, as clearly shown'in Figure 1, are of varying lengths, the shortest being near the free end of the jaw. Grooves 9 are comparatively deep near the pivoted end of the jaw and gradually become more shaland 8, respectively,

low as the shorter grooves are reached. Thus it will be seen that a long nail, which in view of its proportion has a comparatively large diameter, may be gripped by the device between the wider portion of jaws 3 and 4. Accordingly small nails may be properly engaged by the grooves 9 further toward the free end of jaws 3 and 4.

In the modified form of the invention shown in Figure 4 the jaws and handles 3 and 4 and 1 and 2, respectively, are shown to be pivoted at 12 at one end. The grooves, 13, formed in the jaws 3 and 4 of the modified form are also of varying lengths according to distance across the face of the jaw where they arelocated and the longer grooves 13 are, as in the preferred form, deeper than the shorter grooves.

When it is desired to drive a nail into a piece of hard wood and at the same time keep it from bending, it is but necessary to grasp the same between the jaws of the device and allow it to slip downwardly through the engaged grooves until thehead approaches the surface of the board 14.

This device may also be used to draw nails into straightened condition due to the various widths of the aws. A nail of ar y size which.

has been bent to any degree, may be gripped and pulled to the straightened condition where it is held during the driving and until further danger of bending has passed.

It will be seen from the foregoing that I have devised a tool which will not only'aid in the driving of nails, but will be instrumental in saving a large percentage of those nails which are slightly bent when they are driven into hard wood.

Having thus described my invention, what I desire by Letters Patent is:

As a new article of manufacture, a nail gripping device comprising a pair of jaws,

a pivot connecting said jaws to permit movement toward and from each other, adjacent faces of said jaws being 01": isosceles triangular shape with the axis of the pivot forming the bases thereof, and a plurality of grooves formed in said triangular faces perpendicu- JAMES DEALY. 

